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The Hollow of the Hand
PJ Harvey and Seamus Murphy
Royal Festival Hall, London SE1
4/5
Dominating the stage at the Royal Festival Hall is an extraordinary monochrome image of a ceiling hung with flames. Shot by photojournalist Seamus Murphy from the outside of a home in Kosovo, it is an image with eloquence, setting the tone for the evening ahead as the audience take their seats.
Launching The Hollow of the Hand, a publication of poems by renowned singer-songwriter PJ Harvey together with photographs by Murphy, this special event as part of the Southbank Centre’s London Literature Festival sees the stage tentatively divided into three. To the right, a lectern ready for spotlighted poetry recitals; centre stage, musical instruments to perform new material and, to the far right, two seats set for dialogue and narration.
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